Shoe heel reinforcement



y 1939- L. sABo ET AL 2,157,526

SHOE HEEL REINFORCEMENT Filed June 50, 1958 g 12 14 11 (If 14 12 ,wg E

10 B Kiss ATTORNEY Patented July 25, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEApplication June 30, 1938, Serial No. 216,638

3 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in a heelreinforcement.

More specifically, the invention proposes the construction of a heelreinforcement characterized by a strip of material engageable upon thecurved side of a shoe sole at the point of connection between the heeland the sole for reinforcing this area to maintain the heel in positionupon the shoe.

Still further it is proposed to provide the ends of the strip ofmaterial with openings through which fastening elements are adapted tobe engaged for holding the strip in position thereon.

Still further it is proposed to provide the face of the strip ofmaterial adjacent the curved side with a hollowed out portion into whicha stiff member is engaged and which has its ends extending from thesides of the member for engaging the areas of the curved side forassisting the strip of matrial in maintaining the heel in position.

Still further it is proposed to construct the strip of material with aremovable central section having tongues engaging complementary recessesin the end sections when the sections are engaged.

A further object of this invention is to provide a set screw engagedthrough the central section for engaging against the top face of thestiff member for clamping the sections of the strip of material togetherand for holding the stiff member in position within the hollowed outarea.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects andadvantages thereof, reference will be had to the following descriptionand accompanying drawing, and to the appended claims in which thevarious novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawing forming a ma- 40- terial part of thisdisclosure:

Fig. 1 is a bottom perspective View of a shoe having a heelreinforcement constructed according to this invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the heel reinforcement per se.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but illustrating a modification ofthe invention.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 44 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a heel reinforcement constructedaccording to a still further modification of the invention.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 66 of 55 Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a similar view to Fig. 1 but illustrating a still furthermodification of the invention.

The heel reinforcement, according to this invention, is to be used incombination with a shoe I0 having a sole Ill extending along the bottomthereof and across a portion of the arch thereof. A high heel lll isattached to the bottom of the shoe ill at the back thereof and has aface ill at substantially right angles to the plane of the sole Ill ofthe shoe l0. At one end of the face If! adjacent the end of the heelwhich is attached to the shoe l0 and the heel lil continues into a thinarea portion 3 A portion it of the sole Ill extends rearwards to theheel Ill and then downwards along the face [0 of the heel.

The heel reinforcement is characterized by a strip of strong material Hwhich is engaged over the adjacent ends of the thin area portion It! andthe sole I0 The strip of strong material II is formed with a roughenedouter face Il which permits the adjacent face of the portion lo of thesole ID to be securely attached thereto.

Fastening elements l2 are adapted to be engaged through openings llformed in the ends of the strip of strong material I I. The fasteningelements l2 are in the form of screws or similar elements and areadapted to be threadedly engaged into the shoe III for clamping the saidadjacent ends together as a rigid unit. That portion of the face of thestrip of strong material I l adjacent the said ends between the openingsIl is cut away to form a hollowed out area l I forming a space betweenthe adjacent face of the hollowed out portion and the curved side I0According to the modification of the invention shown in Figs. 3 and 4the construction of the heel reinforcement is similar to that previouslydescribed and. the attachment thereof is also the same, distinguishingtherefrom by the inclusion of a stiff member l3 engaged into the spaceformed by the hollowed out portion in the strip of strong material ll Asshown in Fig. 3, the sides of the stiff member 13 extend beyond thesides of the strip of strong material II engaging the areas of the thinportion Ill and the adjacent portion of the sole Ill for assisting thestrip of strong material in clamping the heel Ill in position upon theshoe Ill. In other respects this form of the invention is similar to theprevious form.

According to the modification of the invention shown in Figs. 5 and 6the construction of the heel reinforcement is similar to that describedrelative to Figs. 3 and 4 and differs therefrom in that the strip ofstrong material H is formed of separate sections. The separate sectionforming the strip of strong material comprise end sections H and acentral section H The central section H is formed at its ends withtongues 14 which are adapted to engage into complementary recesses l5formed on the adjacent inner faces of the end sections ll Thisconstruction permits the central section II to be removed from the endsections l l by slipping the same through the sides thereof.

A means is provided for clamping the stiff memher is in position againstthe thin portion l0 and for holding the central section l I in positionbetween the end sections ll This means comprises a set screw "5threadedly engaged through the central section II and bearing againstthe adjacent face of the stiff member l3.

The operation of this device "is as follows:

For assembling the heel reinforcement, according to this form of theinvention, the central section M is engaged between the end sections llby aligning the tongues M with the recesses l5 permitting the centralsection to be moved laterally into position between the end sections liThe end sections il have a thickness greater than the central section I!and when this section is in position a space is formed between theadjacent faces of this section and the thin area Iii into which thestiff member E3 is adapted to be engaged. In this assembled position thescrew I6 may be adjusted for tightly bearing against the adjacent faceof the stiff member l3 to clamp it in position against the thin area It"and maintain the central section II in position between the end sectionsIn other respects this form of the invention is similar to the previousforms.

In Fig. '7 an enlarged reinforcing plate 2! is illustrated with fourfastening elements 22 for securing same to the shank portion 23 of theshoe and three additional fastening elements 22' for securing the bentportion 2| of the enlarged reinforcing plate 2| to the heel Ill of theshoe. By means of this arrangement, the sole, shank and heel portions ofthe shoe are reinforced and prevent the heel from breaking or crackingfrom the shank of the shoe.

While we have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of ourinvention, it is to be understood that we do not limit ourselves to theprecise constructions herein disclosed and the right is reserved to allchanges and modifications coming within the scope of the invention asdefined in the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire tosecure by United States Letter Patent is:

1. In combination with a shoe having a sole extending across the bottomthereof and a heel mounted on said shoe at the back thereof and having athin area portion attached to said shoe,

a strip of strong material engaged on the adjacent ends of said sole andsaid thin area portion transversely thereof, and fastening elementssecuring said strip in position whereby said strip maintains said heelin position on said shoe, the face of said strip which is adjacent saidends being hollowed out between said fastening elements, and a stiffmember engaged within said hollow and extending therefrom and engagingsaid thin area for assisting said strip of strong material inmaintaining said heel in position.

2. In combination with a shoe having a sole extending across the bottomthereof and a heel mounted on said shoe at the back thereof and having athin area portion attached to said shoe, a strip of strong materialengaged on the adjacent ends of said sole and said thin area portiontransversely thereof, and fastening elements securing said strip inposition whereby said strip maintains said heel in position on saidshoe, the face of said strip which is adjacent said ends being hollowedout between said fastening elements, and a stiff member engaged withinsaid hollow and extending therefrom and engaging said thin area forassisting said strip of strong material in maintaining said heel inposition, said strip being composed of end sections and a centralsection having tongue elements engaging transverse recesses in the endsections, and means on said central section for engaging against theadjacent face of said stiff member for holding said stiff member inposition within said hollow and for holding said central section inposition between said end sections.

3. In combination with a shoe having a sole extending across the bottomthereof and a heel mounted on said shoe at the back thereof and having athin area portion attached to said shoe, a strip of. strong materialengaged on the adjacent ends of said sole and said thin area portiontransversely thereof, and fastening elements securing said strip inposition whereby said strip maintains said heel in position on saidshoe, the face of said strip which is adjacent said ends being hollowedout between said fastening elements, and a stiff member engaged withinsaid hollow and extending therefrom and engaging said thin area forassisting said strip of strong material in maintaining said heel inposition, said strip being composed of end sections and a centralsection having tongue elements engaging transverse recesses in the endsections, and means on said central section for engaging against theadjacent face of said stiff member for holding said stiff member inposition within said hollow and for holding said central section inposition between said end sections, said means, comprising a set screwengaging through said central section and abutting said stiff member.

LOUIS SABO. JOSEPH KISS.

